From Freakemporium :Originally released in a limited edition of 60 hand made copies, this LP has gone virtually unknown for 30 years and has only been whispered about by the heaviest of collectors. The band evolved from the local Maryland 60s band "Badge" and is heavily influenced by The Beatles. This is a real DIY effort recorded in the home of the bands leader and dedicated to his pet monkey!!!! No, we're not making it up. . . This release has most of the original LP cuts and a couple of unreleased songs for good measure.Metallic silver and blue paste over cover is a duplication of the original artwork and the inserts contain band photos and story. One of the few folks who have heard this LP, the Psychedelic High Lama, had this to say about Kath..... "Obscure and impressive melodic basement garage/psych excursion with a lo-fi atmosphere that would have most purveyors flip out" "Not unlike the best tracks on Rockadrome" " At times the vibe is almost like Mystery Meat or Index, and that's not something you run across every day." "Good fuzz throughout, charming amateur vocals".Only a few hundred made and on ROCKADELIC!

From Acid Archives :Obscure and quite impressive melodic basement garage/psych excursion with a lo-fi atmosphere that would have most purveyors flip out, hits the Ampex two-track echo & tinny drum sound dead on. The sound is a bit "Canadian" to me, with a few French language snips and a typical Maple Leaf sound with lots of keyboard and reverbed vocals, not unlike the best tracks on Rockadrome. As it turns out the band was actually from Maryland, though leader Val Rogolino was part-French. In any event, it's mostly originals with a few covers including a fuzzed-out cough syrup take on "Norwegian Wood" that could be the best version ever. The selfpenned material is good, with a 60s teenbeat sensibility rather than heavy/hard rock. At times the vibe is almost like Mystery Meat or Index, and that's not something you run across every day. At the same time there are obvious hints that this dates from a later era, and it was in fact recorded over a period of several months in 1974. Good fuzz throughout, charming amateur vocals, and a late-night rehearsal space ambience. "It doesn't mean" is a highpoint for me. There are also brief snips of aural experiments for the right $15 avantgarde touch. "Kath" appears to be a reference to the main guy's girlfriend. The band also had a non-LP EP from 1978 under the name Badge, with a more polished version of "It doesn't mean", and a 45 around the same time. The Rockadelic removes one track from the original, and adds a couple new ones. [PL]

A totally outside garage/psych/private LP that feels as personally projected as alla those Michael Yonkers sides and that was recorded in Maryland in 1974. Nuts lo-fi recording quality and impossible-to-figure production values gives this a nicely zonked almost real-people vibe and I've seen listings that compare the lost, garage feel of this record to revered sides like Mystery Meat and Index. At points the sound is so dosed in lo-fi F/X that it sounds like the tapes are somehow inside out. Buncha originals, some French language, keyboards, fuzz, heap of amateur avant spirit and a cover of "Norwegian Wood" that ranks up there alongside Bill Comeau's "Eleanor Rigby" as one of the few listenable Beatles covers ever cut by teens with brains. Beautiful silver/blue paste-on sleeves and insert with the full saga and pics.